Automobile sled.



F. J. LEHTONEN.

AUTOMOBILE SLED. APP'LIG'ATION FILED JAN. 21, 1913.

Llm Patented July 21, 1914,

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wwwa-soc@ E'. J. LBHTNEN.

AUTOMBILE SLED. l

APPLIGATIQN FILED JAN. 21, 191s.

Patented July 21, 19m.

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FRANK JALMAR LEHTONEN, F NEGAUNEELMICHIGAN. l

Auron/rosita sLED.

Specification of Letters Patent.

l Patented July 21, 1914.

Application sied January 21, 1913. serial No. 743,356.

. To all yw/lom t may concern:

Be it known that I, 'FRANK JALMAR- LEHTONEX, a citizen of the United States,"

residing at Negaunee, in the county of Marquette and State of Michigan, have invented new and useful Improvements in Automobile Sleds, of whichthe following is a speciication.l t

This invention relates to runner attachments for vehicles,and particularly to meanswhereby an automobile or like motor driven carrier may be converted into a sleigh and the driving mechanism 'of the machine used as a propelling force.

Another object of the invention is to provide an attachment of this character wherein will be included rear driving runners that is a section on lline 3 3 of Fig. 2; Fig.

may be operatively connected with the driving mechanism of an automobile without requiring any changes in the construction thereof. y i

A still further object of the invention is the provision of means on the rear driving runners for maximizing the skidding resistance surfaces thereof and for preventing any sudden drifting of the machine on the initial lstartingof the driving motor.

lVith these and other objects in View, the invention consists of` certain novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings Figjire l is a side View of anautomobile, showing the runner attachment applied thereto; F ig. 2 is a section on line 2-2 of Fig. l; Fig. is a section on the line 4 4 of F ig. 2; ig. 5 is a bottom plan view of one of the drivi g runners.

The automobile conventionally vshown herein is provided with a rear driving axle 1 including a sleeve 2, in which the axle is 'I journaled and to which the body supporting springs 3 are connected `in the usual well known manner.

ARear driving runners 5 are mounted upon the ends of the sleeve 2 and are shown to mclude c'asings having separable sections 6 and 7 which are bolted together, as at S. whereby thev may7 be readily disconnected when it is desired to expose the power transmitting 'mechanism. The inner sections 6 of said casings are provided with boxes 9, which artly encircle the sleeve 2 and form bearings therefor. Each of the rear runners is provided with two running surfaces lO-f which. are respectively disposed at the oppo--V p site side of a. slot 11 in the lower wall of the" casing sections 6. Flanges 12 on the lower wall ofthe casing sections 6 are disposed at the sides of the runner surfaces'lO and secured thereto through the medium of bolts or suitable removable devices 13 so as to permit worn surfaces 10 to be removed when desired and replaced by new surfaces at av minimum cost. i,

The casing sections 6 are provided with longitudinally adjustable shafts il, having small driving cog-wheels 1T which are connected by a driving chain 18 with a power transmitting cog-wheel 19 at ythe end of the axle 1 so that when the latter is revolved power therefrom will be transmitted to the -shafts 1li. A tensioning mechanism 15 is supported from the casing and is shown to include a. sprocket` 15 connected with the upper lead ofthe traction chain 20.

The traction chain 20 passes over and around the companion sprocket gears 16, being arranged thereon whereby one lead of the chain will always be disposed between the walls of the slot 11 with a' resultant exposure of the spurs 22 with the surface of the ice. The surfaces 10are provided with longitudinally extending ribs, which are adapt-ed to obtain such purchase with the ice as will positively prevent the side drifting of the sleigh .whenpower is applied to the driving chains. The spurs 22 are preferably flatl` being rigidly secured to the links 2l of the chains and diagonally arranged thereon or disposed substantially at an obtuse angle with the running surfaces' 10, whereby. to coperate with the ribs and thereby maximize the skidding resistance of the runners.

Brackets 25 are secured to the axle sleeve 2 and asshown said brackets include oppositely extending portions 26, which are disposed in spaced relation to the top walls 27 ,of the casing sections 6. -Springs28 are interposed between the said top walls 2'( and the extensions 26 so as to permit the rear runners to yield and to accommodate themselves to imperfections or irregularities in the surfaces over which they are traveling. Straps 29 upon the casing sections 6 are connected with the sleeve 2 so as to permit rocxing movements of the casings concentric of the sleeve. The axle extremities on which the driving cog gears 19 aremounted, are

preferably mounted in bearings 30 in the? brackets secured on the sleeve and having ab casing sections 6. c forwardly and rearwardly extending arms, .The front axle'3l is provided With run- 1 casings mounted for rocking movements' on ners 82 havingcontinuous running surfaces the sleeve and into which the end s 'o"f the 33, 'which are operatively connected With l axle extend7 said casings having innerporthe steering mechanism 34 of the -machine l tions arranged below the brackets, cushion- 5 so ,that the latter-may be guided in any-i ing springs between the upper sides rof the direction. A brake band 34" is connected in upper-portions of the casings andthe ends the 4usual manner with the rear driving axle of the said bracket arms, propelling mechalo so that the machine may be brou'glit'to an nisnis inthe casings and driving connections iinrnedlate standstill when the .engine is l between the ends of the axle and the propel- 40 stopped. The engine or driving motor 35 is ling mechanisms.. j connected in the usual Well known manner T he combination with a `vehicle 'having With the rear aXle-of the automobile which a driven axle, a sleeve 'embracing the, axle,

15 'is conventionally illustrated. l casings carried by. thesleeve, -the casings F rom the foregoing description, taken in Vhaving'relatively large slots in their bottom 45 connection with the ,accompanying dravv-l Walls, .traetionchains mounted in the cas;` ings, the construction and operation of the ings' and having parallel f spurs traveling" invention 'will be readily understood without through the slots and arranged diagonally 20 requiring a more lextended explanation. therein, dri-ving means for the chains and-f!PA VVarious changes in the form, proportion longitudinal spaced ribs formed on the bot-g and the' iminor detailsof construction may toms of the'casing's4 beyond the ends of the be resorted to Without departing :from the said slots.

principle or sacrificing any of the advanx n'testimony whereof I affix' my signature 25 tages of this inventiomas claimed. c in presence of two witnesses'.4

v Having thus described my invent-ion7 What F. JALMAR LEHTONEN.

. I claim is Witnesses: 1, v In combinatioma vehicle having a rear Josnrn H. PRIMEAU, Jr., driven zax`le,y av sleeve embracing the axle, MYRTLE FERM. 

